iModules Headquarters

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Our largest Design/Build project to date is just months away from completion. The windows were delivered yesterday to the job site in Leawood, Kansas. Soon the plastic weather barrier will come down and the storefront system will go up, followed closely by drywall to cover the metal framing that’s already up inside. After the window system is in place, we’ll attach perforated aluminum solar shades to the face of the concrete structure. Right now, the building looks like this.

When it’s finished, the building will look more like this, perpetually glowing under warm California-esque light.

5101 College will be the new headquarters of a software company called iModules. Unfortunately no one can be told what an iModule is. You have to experience it for yourself.

Meet Ron White. He’s the site superintendent at Palo Verde. Ron drives the long white truck with the green eldo Design/Build logo. He calmly smokes a cigarette, rubs his beard and uses 30 years of construction experience to make sure the job is done correctly and efficiently. Ron is a wealth of knowledge and a true asset to our other site supers. He knows the right way to do things because he already tried them the wrong way once, and he never makes the same mistake twice.

Inside of iModules, the plumbers install piping and electricians run conduit through the metal framing. Two steel stairs are in place, and the columns and ceiling look just like they will when the job is finished.

Diffused light filters through the plastic wrap like a Japanese shoji screen. We expect the solar shades to provide a similarly poetic light quality to the finished spaces.

The two-story building has a simple rectangular floor plan and an exposed concrete structure. A central core holds restrooms, stairs, an elevator, and rooms for data storage and technological equipment. There are private offices and conference rooms on the east and west ends, and open office space to the north and south.

The lower level is comprised of training rooms, an entry lobby, and a cafeteria.

The perforated aluminum solar shades are tailored to the sun’s orientation and the interior building functions. To the south, they run parallel to the windows, removed at strategic locations (hallways, doorways) to open up views across the open office floor.

To the east and west, the solar shades take the form of angled vertical louvers, their spacing varied according to the shading needs of the rooms inside. The north facade is open, shielded from a busy street by a row of trees and landscaping. A steel frame awning covers the building entry and shades an outdoor patio.

East Elevation

South Elevation

Over the course of the project, our Design / Build team has put forth a commendable effort, managing subs, pricing diverse scopes of work and overseeing a complex construction process.

The job trailer may not look like much from the outside, but it’s in here and on the surrounding job site that our integrated team makes the tough decisions that allow us to realize our architectural visions and give the client the best building for their money.